Why Can’t I Touch My Toes?

Why Can’t I Touch My Toes?

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In our tip of the day on Intagram we showed you a quick way to improve your tissue quality with a softball, baseball, tennis or golf ball. We said that it could help people that struggle with, plantar fasciitis, calf tightness, shin splints and foot/toe cramps. The concept behind rolling out the bottom of your foot is very similar to that of the foam roller, but on a smaller scale and it is actually affecting a different tissue. In this case you are rolling out the Fascia which is on the sole of your feet.  

What is Fascia? It is a connective tissue that is similar to tendons and ligaments but fascia actually wraps around/ covers muscles. Its function is to help with a more fluid movement during activity or when contract muscles.

               

           Fascia can get stuck and loss its ability to function in providing the fluidity that the muscles need. Which is why either foam or ball rolling is important, and considering that fascia is connected to all of your body, it is important that we get it moving and help it in any way that we can to perform its function.

                

           The question of why you can’t touch your toes can be a loaded one, yet most people either have tight muscles or restricted fascia. Try this simple exercise:

           

           Try and touch your toes: don’t bend your knees or bounce. Remember how far you were able to reach. Some of you might not touch and some might touch the floor.

Now grab a golf ball or tennis ball: roll out each of the soles of your feet. Do this for about 30 seconds each focusing on putting pressure, you can sit down and do this if the pressure of standing on it is too much.

Try and touch your toes again: in theory you should be able to go a little further. The reason being is that you are allowing the fascia on the soles of your feet to regain their function. This can happen with not only the soles of your feet but all other muscles as well.

Continuing with the concept of teaching the basics of a fitness programing, lets finish up the first section of the warm up “Form Rolling Complex” .

Movement and Mobility 12-15 min Foam Rolling Complex Exercise Time Lower Leg Calf 15 sec/ per side Thigh IT band 15 sec/ per side Adductors 15 sec/ per side Quads 15 sec/ per side Hips Hamstring/ Glute Attachment 15 sec/ per side Glutes 15 sec/ per side Thoracic Spine Thoracic Roll 30 sec Lat Roll 15sec/ per side

Just like the soles of our feet, with foam or ball rolling you can change the tissue quality in other muscles. Here is a video of the “Hips” and “Thoracic Spine”: